When the Dock bug found out that his cousin the Green shield bug had received a blog post all to himself, he was not amused. Was he not as lovely? Was he not as worthy of attention? Well, yes, angry little Dock bug, you most certainly are, so here is your moment in the spotlight!

Coreus marginatus is the Dock bug’s scientific name, and he’s a largish (13-15mm), broadish, reddish-brownish sap-sucker. Luckily, his sap-sucking is restricted to the leaves of docks and sorrels so he’s not the pest that some other members of the squashbug (bugs on squash plants) family can be.

Mr and Mrs Dock bug seek each other out in the springtime to create the new generation, then, once hatched, their offspring, like most True bugs, go through five nymph stages before emerging as adults from about August. I’ve only ever seen the adults, in the shrubs, bushes and hedgerows alongside many of my walking trails, but there are plenty around – three sitting close together on one sunny leaf just last week. As well as inhabiting much of southern Britain, the Dock bug can also be found throughout Europe, in many Asian countries and in parts of North Africa.